California Joe (1943)

It's just after the Civil War and Burgess, Atkinson, and Colton have plans to make California a separate nation. Weldon with sidekicks Tumbleweed and Carteret are sent west to thwart the attempt.

Director:

Spencer Gordon Bennet (as Spencer Bennett)

Writer:

Norman S. Hall (original screenplay)

Stars:

Don 'Red' Barry, Wally Vernon, Helen Talbot

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Don 'Red' Barry	...	Lt. Joe Weldon
Wally Vernon	...	Tumbleweed Smith
Helen Talbot	...	Judith Carteret
Twinkle Watts	...	Twinkle Potter
Brian O'Hara	...	Delancey Carteret
Terry Frost	...	Melborne Tommy Atkinson
LeRoy Mason	...	Breck Colton
Edward Earle	...	Col. Burgess
Charles King	...	Ashley - Henchman
Pierce Lyden	...	Harper - Henchman
Edmund Cobb	...	Henchman
Karl Hackett	...	Potter - Telegrapher
Bob Kortman	...	Henchman (as Robert Kortman)

Storyline

It's just after the Civil War and Burgess, Atkinson, and Colton have plans to make California a separate nation. Weldon with sidekicks Tumbleweed and Carteret are sent west to thwart the attempt.

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Plot Keywords:

cowboy in tight pants | cowboy horse relationship | cowboy cowboy relationship | mentally challenged sidekick | california | 

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Taglines:

"RED" RIDES AGAIN! (original ad - all caps)

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 December 1943 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Iverson Ranch - 1 Iverson Lane, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Republic Pictures (I)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

55 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

User Reviews

Are You a Cowboy?

Don 'Red' Barry was a college football player who spent a long life as a B Western Star, mostly for Republic Pictures, which specialized in turning out just this sort of picture, in between its vehicles for singing cowboys Gene Autrey and Roy Rogers. When their biggest straight western star, John Wayne, moved on to greener pastures, Barry became their go-to star, and they produced well-written, inexpensive vehicles like this.

In the one, Barry plays a spy for the north during the Civil War, sent to California to prevent California from joining the Confederacy under the malign influence of the 'Knights of the Golden Circle.' The movie starts out with a beautifully choreographed fight sequence and there are a couple of others throughout -- Republic actually perfected the filming of the fight sequence for its B movies.

All in all a pleasant, if not terribly remarkable effort.